Stargate: Regenesis - Pilot Episode
by Nova69
Summary: PILOT: By orders of the International Oversight Advisory (IOA), a newly Commissioned UK Stargate Program begins its operations from an off-world base on the planet Eboras. Its frontline team - GB1 - are introduced to each other for the very first time...or is it?
1. Act 1

_**STARGATE REGENESIS : PILOT EPISODE**_

_**Act 1:**_

The _kawoosh_ of the Stargate leapt forth into the large room in an explosion of silvery matter then retreated back into what appeared to be a shimmering vertical pool of water. After a few short moments where everyone and everything had stood still, from the pool emerged two men dressed in beige Battle-Uniform. The looks on their faces were as though they had just exited the largest, scariest and fastest rollercoaster ride ever devised by man. The two men looked around their new surroundings for a while before looking back at each other, smiling: "That was awesome!" they said in unison.

"Captain Turner, Captain Wood, welcome to Eboras." The voice over the tannoy was silky-smooth, a light-pitched welcoming feminine Irish one. Something about the familiar accent made the whole notion feel normal yet the out-of-this-world trip through the Stargate they had just experienced plus the basic fact that they knew they were on another planet reminded them that this was anything but. Captains Turner and Wood looked up to where the voice had travelled from and said in unison once more; "Thank you!"

A familiar, gruff American male voice then enquired over the tannoy; "Officer Kennedy, lovely to speak to you again. I trust they have arrived safe and sound?" It didn't sound nearly as appealing as the one the two Soldiers had heard moments before.

"Sure they have General, and thanks." The female voice replied.

"Excellent! I believe that's almost the last of them, sorry about the delay. I hope they don't cause you too much trouble." The conversation flowed as though the two had spoken many times before.

"I'm sure they won't, General."

"OK then. I guess you fine people can soon get started. We will contact you once again soon the last of the soldiers are prepped and ready to go. Godspeed. I'll look forward to hearing those mission reports from Eboras very soon. SGC out." With that, the Stargate and the vertical pool of water dissipated into nothingness and the room fell into silence, save for the noise of the Engineers going about their business and Technicians tapping away on their keyboards.

One of the men, Captain Brandon Turner - a lean, well-built soldier - looked toward his left and began pacing slowly in that direction and said; "So here we are then mate, what d'you reckon?"

The other man, Jason Wood - tall and athletic of average build - didn't move but still had the look of wonder and amazement on his face as he looked around the room, replied; "I reckon you owe me £100."

Captain Turner laughed and said; "Yeah I guess I do…" He turned back round to face his fellow soldier and added; "…but I'm not paying up until I actually _see_ something Alien right?!"

"Well, what about him?" Captain Wood pointed beyond Captain Turner's shoulder to a rather odd-looking elderly gentleman in a jump-suit poking at a cabinet full of switches with a screwdriver in the corner of the room. Captain Turner took a look at the man, looked back and sniggered under his breath.

They had just arrived on Eboras from a somewhere called Stargate Command, or the SGC as the American voice over the tannoy referred to it. This was a secret, underground facility hidden away under a Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado where the two Captains had spent the last few days. Only yesterday, they had met with a host of suited Political types from several different nations who apparently were representatives of a Political group known as the _International Oversight Advisory_ who were overseeing something they called the Stargate Program. Their representatives were the condescending, patronizing types, generally the type who made soldiers like Captains Turner and Wood question why in the world they took orders from this kind of over-privileged sponges. They had been told they had been chosen to take part in something amazing, an opportunity to visit countless worlds or something close to that effect, words which almost made Captain Turner get up and walk straight back home. However, something about representing the United Kingdom in the great, continuing exploration of the Galaxy made him decide to hear them out, albeit with the greatest degree of scepticism.

Once the suits had finished their spiel, the Captains were shown to their guest quarters before being gifted a grand tour of the SGC by a Major General of the US Air Force, which was an absolute honour to them both. The General had showed them several admittedly impressive things, including the blueprints and several digital slides of something they could only describe as 'that kick-ass ship off Star Trek' and a sleek, deadly-looking Fighter Jet which made them both wish they'd joined the Royal Air Force instead of the Army. The following day - today - began with them enduring a God-awful meal in the SGC commissary which again made Captain Turner question his desire to take part in whatever this was, before the General invited them for a full briefing on what they'd been selected for and why. As it turned out, they were among a select group of soldiers from the British Army and Royal Air Force respectively, personally chosen to participate in the United Kingdom's own Stargate Program located off-world on a planet called Eboras. The suits from the day before were comprised of delegates from five of the most powerful Nations across the globe - including the UK. The IOA, as the good General referred to them (and Captain Turner noted well the disgust in his voice as he uttered the name…) had wanted all participating Nations with knowledge of the Stargate to be actively involved in the Program so as to prove their worth and commitment to their continuing participation in it. They, and the soldiers who had been briefed before them, were selected because they were the men & women who displayed the most exemplary and noteworthy performances during their service and would be the best example of the military that the UK could put forth to the Galaxy as representatives. By now, they'd had their attentions held firmly and the two Captains had a distinct sense of self-pride and honour about them, and understandably so. Throughout the rest of the briefing they could not stop smiling - the tributes they'd just heard said about them, and from a US General too, filled them with more pride and a sense of importance than any of their previous promotions had ever had.

"You will lead by example." The General, Hank Landry had said. "You will be representing your Great Country to the highest order. You are the Greatest at what you do, and I'm sure you'll do yourselves and your superiors extremely proud. I cannot wait to read your mission reports." With that, they were dismissed and told to get ready for 'Gate Travel'. Gate Travel? What the hell was Gate Travel? Amazingly enough, no-one, not the suits nor even the General had told them exactly how they were going to get to this Eboras place. Sure enough, when they got their first look at the Gate, their reactions were just like everyone else's who had seen the 'Gate for the first time - pure astonishment. Watching the look on people's faces and their reaction to the Stargate _kawoosh_ as the event horizon formed and then retracted just never got old for General Landry and he let out a little chuckle as the two British soldiers in the Gate Room ducked out of the way of the splash that leapt forth into the Room. He tapped the button to the tannoy that would release his voice into the room before him and gave the 'Go' to the soldiers.

"Are we supposed to walk into that or something?" Captain Turner enquired under his breath to his fellow soldier.

"I bloody hope not!" Captain Wood replied. He looked back at General Landry who simply shooed them on while Captain Turner looked to the USAF soldiers who lined the back wall with an appealing shrug of his shoulders.

"I think we are you know, Jase." Captain Turner said as he turned back around after failing to get a response from the soldiers at the back wall…who reminded him a little of the Guards outside Buckingham Palace who were never allowed to talk

"Errrm…yeah I think so too. Sod it, let's go." Captain Wood said as he walked up the ramp. Captain Turner followed quickly behind. At the Point of No Return, they both paused to hold their breath in front of the Stargate and to ready themselves before they presumably stepped through.

"So you reckon they've told us everything then?" Captain Turner enquired, not taking his eyes off the fluctuating glow of sub-space in front of him, "I mean you know what these Yanks are like…"

"Probably not…" Captain Wood replied, who again did not move an inch; "…but I'm sure we're about to see something amazing!"

"That sounds like a line from a crap movie, Jase." Captain Turner said plainly, looking at the Stargate. He turned and smiled; "The bet still on?"

"Sure, why not?"

"OK then I suppose this is it." Captain Turner said. He turned and smiled back at the Control Room with a quick salute back to General Landry, looked back toward Captain Wood with a nod and they both stepped into the water.

The odd-looking, elderly jumpsuit guy had finished jabbing at the cabinet of switches and had just left the large room. Captain Turner felt for a moment a sense of guilt at mocking him and hoped he hadn't overheard what they'd been saying.

"Right…so what now?" Captain Wood enquired.

"I dunno Jase." Captain Turner replied; "I guess we wait 'til someone tells us what to do." His attention now also piqued by the fact they'd just a moment ago been deep under a mountain in the middle of the USA, now they were…somewhere else entirely. As if on cue, that divine Irish voice flowed gracefully through the tannoy once more to answer the question. "If you'd like to exit the doors to your right, I'd be happy to show you to the briefing room. General Etherington is looking forward to meeting you."

"OK," said Captain Wood. His question apparently had been answered; "I guess that's what we're doing."

"Etherington, you heard of him?" enquired Captain Turner.

"No, but Etherington sounds posh. Reckon he's just like all the other Generals."

"What, stuffy? Arrogant? Head up their own A-"

"Yeah that's exactly what I mean Bran…" Captain Wood cut him off; "…he can probably hear you, you know." They both remembered how Captain Wood's earlier question was answered as soon as he'd asked it and wondered if this place had any sort-of Big-Brother style sensory equipment hooked up everywhere.

"Aah, he'll be a Pussycat Jase. Let's go." and with that, Captain Brandon Turner and Captain Jason Wood exited through the doors to their right.


	2. Act 2

_**Act 2:**_

"Good Morning Captains, my name is Warrant Officer Naimh Kennedy." said a rather beautiful young woman who greeted the two Captains as they walked through the door. That dulcet, Irish voice sounded even more majestic without the tinny grain of the tannoy and now they could put an equally beautiful face to it; "I'd like to welcome you once again to Eboras."

"Good Morning Officer." Captain Turner said. This time he got in before his fellow Soldier; "Captain Turner, and this is erm…" He clicked his fingers as though trying to remember who Captain Wood was.

"Captain Wood." The other Captain butted in. He fixed his friend with a glare and cursed under his breath. That would have been _his_ line.

"I know who you are, Captain," Officer Kennedy said with a smile; "If you'd like to follow me please." she gestured her hand down a long corridor.

"Off-duty though, it's Brandon." said Captain Turner.

"…and you can call me Jase! Off-duty I mean." chirped Captain Wood. He was playing catch-up.

"Brandon & Jase Hmm? Very well Captains, off-duty you can call me Officer Kennedy…for now." The Officer began her walk down the long corridor, smiling. The two Captains shot a puzzled look toward each other, and then swiftly followed.

"So how did you like the journey to Eboras?" Officer Kennedy enquired as they walked.

"Meh, it was nothing really." Jase answered, knowing full well she wouldn't believe him. It had been one of the best experiences of his entire life and his head was still spinning from it.

"It was awesome!" said Brandon, who was now striding alongside the Officer; "Do we really get to do this for a living?"

"Sure you do!" said Officer Kennedy, flashing him a grin this time; "Some people just get all the fun don't they?"

"How was _your_ trip?" enquired Brandon.

"Well…I'm embarrassed to say that I fainted, I'm afraid." answered Officer Kennedy, blushing.

"Wow, that _is_ embarrassing." he said, wishing he'd been there to help bring her round. Silently he was glad his own trip through the Stargate didn't make him pass out too as she'd have seen the whole thing. He remembered the first few moments after he stepped out onto Eboras and remembered how close he'd actually been to falling flat on his six.

Changing the subject, he asked the Officer; "So about this General Etherington, what's he like? Is he one of the good ones?"

"He's fine I suppose, although I haven't really dealt with him much just yet as we haven't officially begun operations." Officer Kennedy replied; "I've been here about a week or so myself. He doesn't seem the kind of General who'd give orders for the sake of it. He seems OK but like I say I haven't dealt with him much." Brandon had always liked to gain as much info - or even dirt - on his superiors as he could before he had to finally meet them so, at the very least, he knew how much he could get away with.

"Hang on," said Jase, who was lagging a little behind by now, "You said good morning to us just now…" he directed the question at Officer Kennedy, then looked at his watch, which displayed '14:23'.

"Yes?"

He waved his watch at her; "Well it's like nearly half past two." He never liked stating the time in military jargon as it always gave him a headache.

"We're on another planet you Moron." said Brandon looking back, who'd got his sly dig in just as Officer Kennedy opened her mouth to answer. She ducked her head down to disguise the giggle.

"Truth is…" she said as she said, looking back up as she managed to compose herself; "…we don't really have any idea exactly what time it is here. The days seem a little longer than they do back home. The suns have just risen however, so we figure it's in the morning sometime." She gestured her hand once again, this time out the window they were walking past. Brandon and Jase looked at each other once again puzzled; _"suns?"_ they mouthed to each other and they followed Officer Kennedy's hand and gazed out the window. The view they had from the window made their jaws drop almost to the floor. According to the view, they were high up in a mountain range, large imposing golden mountains stretched out far and wide, encompassing a large clearing on the ground, which was at the foot of the mountain they were apparently situated. In the clearing itself, they could see what looked like an already established military training ground: Soldiers running in groups, a firing range on the left and on the right, a few dozen military tents and Barracks. In the distance, they could see the blue-green glow of a huge ocean. To the far right, more mountains and large scopes of tropical forest and specks of desert as far as the eye could see. They looked up into the sky and saw what looked like a small moon hovering in front of a giant red and orange planet. To the planets right, a bright sun shone proud. It was slightly larger than the sun they were able to see back home and, despite the fact it actually hurt their eyes to look, they could not tear them away. High up in the sky to the top-right of the massive planet sat a smaller, yet equally enthralling sun shining proud also.

"OK." said Brandon after a good while; "I definitely owe you £100 now." Jase said nothing, only smiling as he continued to look at the beautiful scene laid out in front of him. He said at last; "I think I'm going to like it here."

"Beautiful isn't it?" the Irish voice flowed gracefully back towards their ears.

"Yeah it is." Brandon was lost for words and that was all he could muster at this moment in time.

"Almost as lovely as Belfast!" Officer Kennedy quipped. She'd seen the view many times before; "We're almost there, gents." She turned and continued to walk and the Captains managed to break free of the hypnotic scene and followed her.

A few moments later, Officer Kennedy stopped in front of a door. On it, a sign displaying the words: 'Lt. Gen. Peter Etherington' and underneath, a Military design: a golden Sword crossed with its sheath. Above this was displayed a gold diamond-shaped emblem. She turned to look back at Brandon and Jase and smiled; "OK lads, he's inside. You ready?"

"Yes Officer, we're ready." said Brandon, Jase confirmed his readiness with a simple nod. The two Captains straightened themselves out and made sure their Berets were sitting properly on their heads. The casual jokiness that had up to now emanated from them both had by now all-but subsided. Now the true, proud, presentable soldiers hand-picked for this assignment stood in front of the door. Hands behind their backs ready to meet their new commander-in-chief. Their hearts skipped a beat or three as Officer Kennedy rapped on the door. From inside, a solid, assured male voice answered; "Come."

Officer Kennedy opened the door and walked inside. Brandon and Jase waited until she had fully entered the room before they proceeded to follow. The room looked very official and not unlike General Landry's own office back on Earth at the SGC, where they had just been not half an hour before. Military insignia and pictures adorned the walls and in the centre, stood a giant, polished oak desk. Behind it sat a large man, dressed in full General uniform, in his mid to late 50's by Brandon's estimation…thinning grey hair and lines around his eyes and face that showed not only his age, but also his experience. He looked up as the Warrant Officer and the two Captains entered his office and when the door was closed behind them, he rose to his feet. He was a good three inches over six-foot and his large arms and broad body spoke volumes about the type of man he was, still in very good shape despite his age. Brandon suddenly had the sinking feeling he would not be getting away with all that much during his time on Eboras.

The Imposing General saluted firmly as he rose to his feet and with the authority of a man who was simply not to be messed with. The Two Captains and the Warrant Officer saluted back, this time all three of them in unison.

"Welcome to Eboras." The General said, looking toward the two Captains; "My name is Major General Peter Etherington and I am your Commanding Officer on this Base." The Captains nodded their heads with understanding. Etherington then turned to Officer Kennedy; "Thank you Officer. That will be all."

Officer Kennedy saluted once again then turned back toward the door. She gave a glance toward Brandon and Jase which seemed to say 'good luck 'and flashed another little smile before she left the room. Brandon wondered for a split-second if that was a lucky escape or not. The moment the door closed shut, Etherington continued; "As you have no doubt been informed by General Landry back at the SGC already, you are here because our Government and our Military believe you are among the best and brightest soldiers we have." He began slowly walking round the table at which he was stood toward the two Captains; "You will be representing our Country. Therefore I expect you to show every ounce of the Integrity and Responsibility that brought you on this Assignment in the first place, every minute of every day during your time here, however long that may be." He paused as he looked directly into the eyes of the two young, slightly terrified Captains. He had stopped walking and was by now standing directly in front of them both; "Understood?"

"YES SIR!" the two Captains said once again in unison. They felt like they were back on the Parade Ground at Catterick Garrison.

"Good. So you two are…?" Etherington enquired first at Brandon.

"Captain Brandon Turner, 1st Yorkshire Regiment, SIR!"

"Captain Jason Wood, 1st Yorkshire Regiment also, SIR!"

Etherington nodded for a moment then continued his walk around the other side of his desk; "Now everyone back home including my fellow Generals may have many good things to say about you two but we have never met one another before now. This means you are yet to have done a single thing to impress me, and I am not easily impressed I can assure you. The slate is wiped clean. As far as I am concerned, you are back at square one. Is _that_ understood?" Once again, the two Captains demonstrated their understanding in unison, just as before. "Good." He was now back behind his desk and sat down at his chair, his eyes still fixed at those of the two Captains in front of him. "At Ease, Soldiers." He said at last. Brandon and Jase eased out of their Military Stances and took their first real breaths of air since entering the Generals Office which now seemed like hours ago.

"Now I trust the two of you been informed of the details your Assignments, yes?" he turned to Jase; "Captain Wood, your Assignment?"

Jase appeared in thought for just a moment before answering; "We are to lead several teams of Soldiers through the Stargate to other planets and establish trade relations and friendships with the peoples of the Galaxy and wherever possible, recover technologies suitable for Defending Earth against any and all threats, SIR!"

"I see Landry briefed you well." Etherington smiled. Brandon was happy to see his new CO was at least capable of smiling. "That's correct Captain Wood. You _are _here to lead your teams trough the Stargate to other worlds." Etherington's eyes flicked toward Brandon before flicking back; "You, Captain Wood, will be assigned to lead GB2. Your team is in fact ready to be introduced to you now. Officer Kennedy will be waiting outside and will take you to the briefing room where they are waiting."

"Thank you, Sir." Jase replied as he saluted once again. He watched as the General rose back to his feet and returned the salute.

"You're Welcome, Dismissed." Etherington's hand raised up and gestured toward the door

With that, Jase dropped his salute and turned to Brandon. He smiled out the corner of his mouth to his fellow Soldier and best friend. He exited the room and closed the door behind him, leaving Brandon alone with Etherington.

"Captain Turner." Etherington continued, sitting back in his chair again. He looked down toward several pieces of paper scattered along the desk; "I'm going to assume you were told that you would also be commanding a unit. Am I right?"

"Yes Sir. General Brody informed me of this at Catterick before I left for the SGC. General Landry did so too. I must say I am very much looking forward to it."

"I thought so." Etherington appeared lost in thought as he replied. He looked up from his papers; "I'm sorry I have to be the one to inform you of this. I had hoped someone would have explained this to you back at the SGC. I'm afraid there has been a slight change of plan."

"Yes Sir?" Brandon enquired.

"The unit you will be joining is named GB1, our flagship team Captain."

"Thank You Sir!" Brandon's face lit up.

"But you will not be the Commanding Officer on this unit, I'm sorry." Etherington barely let Brandon's words escape his mouth. The smile on Brandon's face fell ever-so-slowly into a frown.

"Can I ask why Sir?" Brandon took several seconds before answering. He tried but failed to hide the disappointment in his face and his voice.

"GB1 is the front-line team as I have said. You have been selected as part of that team for your exceptional skills…the best in your Regiment so I'm told."

"Yes Sir. So why-"

"The decision was made that a team such as this requires leadership beyond the rank of Captain, I'm sorry." Etherington seemed sincere and sympathetic. A world away from the stern General Brandon had met a few minutes ago. The two men looked at each other for a moment before Etherington continued; "GB1's Commanding Officer will arrive here shortly. Find the commissary and have a drink or something. I will personally find you when the other members of your team are ready to meet you. I'm sorry you had to find out like this."

"Yes, Sir." Brandon replied with a sigh. He saluted the General then lowered his arm back down to his side. Had he been informed of this by General Brody back home, Brandon may have had something to say about the state of British Intelligence. Sure it would have been sarcastic enough for Brody to take offence yet cheeky enough to just let slide. Brandon decided to let it go for now, there wasn't anything he could do about it anyway. Once Etherington returned his salute with a simple smile and a nod, Brandon left the office in search of the commissary.


	3. Act 3

_**Act 3:**_

The view from the Balcony was as equally enthralling as the one he'd seen through the window on the corridor walking towards Etherington's office about an hour ago. This time the view he had overlooking more of Eboras faced south…assuming of course the window view before had been facing north. Looking out onto the horizon, he noticed several wisps of smoke rising up from the occasional point in Eboras' vast forest area and figured these points must be where some of the settlements he'd been told about were located. He'd been informed during General Landry's briefing back at the SGC that Eboras was a planet already populated by around several dozen indigenous tribes by the time this very base had been established. He remembered being eager to learn more about these tribes at the time but unfortunately the briefing moved swiftly on to something about the construction of the base and he'd lost interest. Now he was on the planet himself, he was very much looking forward to meeting the locals and learning as much as he could about them and hoped it wouldn't be long until he got the chance to do that.

The commissary hadn't been all that hard to find, all he'd had to do was follow the smell of bacon and butter and he'd found it almost straight away. It was located on the other end of the long corridor where Etherington's office was situated, through the double-doors at the end, up a few stairs and into a large cafeteria area. Brandon had found a nice empty table on the balcony and had been sitting there on his own since. He was on his fourth coffee already.

The news about not being the CO of GB1 as he had expected had taken a little while for Brandon to stomach. He had spent the last few days joking with Jase about whose team would be the best and the two had already planned several inter-team football matches among other things. By his third coffee however, Brandon had come to terms with the news and was fine about it. Etherington's words kept floating back into his head; _'GB1 is the front-line team, you have been selected as part of that team for your exceptional skills…the best in your Regiment.'_ The General had intended those words as a compliment and, despite the disappointment he was feeling, Brandon was treating them as such. The frontline team was the one that got all the juiciest missions and as a result would need a team with a range of skills and capable of handling any problems facing them. The more Brandon thought about it, the more he was happy about just being a part of that set-up and felt that pride seeping slowly back into his mind. He pondered what his CO would be like: Would he stick by the book? Would he be as willing as Brandon to dig deep and go that 'extra mile' as it were? Would he have anything remotely resembling a sense of humour? Brandon chuckled as he drank to the bottom of his fourth coffee, thinking aloud; _'for his sake, I hope he has._

The smell of melting butter eventually got the better of him and decided he would grab a few rounds of toast to go with his fifth coffee. Truth was he'd not had a bite to eat since that…'stuff' he'd eaten back at the SGC commissary for breakfast. The food here appeared, smelt and indeed tasted infinitely better than back at Stargate Command and Brandon thanked the Lord above for that at least. As he collected his toast, he heard the noise of the Stargate _kawoosh_ from the Embarkation room and was glad the base alarm on Eboras sounded not nearly as annoying as the one back under Cheyenne Mountain. The noise and flurry of activity sounded like it had died down by the time he returned to his table.

Tucking in to his toast, he lost himself in thought - looking back on his military career to date and the recent chain of events that had led to his involvement with the Stargate Program here on Eboras. He left school with good grades and was all set to further his education into College then University, much to the delight of his family who had expected him to end up a Lawyer or a Solicitor. He turned his back on education by 17 however and joined the Army instead, something he and Jase had always dreamed of doing since childhood. His aim was to get fit and become a leader, as he always knew he had it in him to do just that. Within just a few months he had transformed himself into a lean, athletic, eager soldier who was always itching to better himself and push at his own boundaries. Jase had joined him at Catterick Garrison a year later and the two showed themselves to be exemplary soldiers of the whole of their Regiment, showing a remarkable ability to work together to complete any task thrown at them. A little part of him felt slightly disappointed that Jase wasn't going to be joining him on GB1, but if anyone had deserved their own command then it was Jase. Besides, Brandon had always enjoyed competing against his best friend just as much as working alongside him.

His thoughts led him to consider the current political state back home on earth. He looked back on the day he was ordered to ship out to the Middle East and attempt to bring peace to those lands. He remembered the young men and women who'd shipped out with him on that day also, some of which he'd come to know very well during his time serving his country, more than a few of which were sadly no longer around…he remembered them with a smile. Perhaps if their fates had been kinder to some of them, they may well have been sitting at this table eating toast and drinking coffee instead of him at this moment. All of a sudden, Brandon felt extremely fortunate to be part of this Program. He thanked the Lord again for blessing him with an opportunity like this and at the same time said a silent prayer for his colleagues and friends he'd once served with who hadn't been given the same chance that he was given.

"Capt. Turner." A solid, assured, familiar voice snapped him back to reality and Brandon quickly spun his head around. General Etherington was striding towards him, somehow he seemed even bigger and more imposing from further away. He was not alone however. Several well-dressed men and women were following suit behind him. Brandon wondered just for a second whether or not he was in trouble. He placed his half-drunk fifth cup of coffee back down on the table and rose to his feet.

"At ease, Captain." said Etherington as he approached the table. He returned the salute Brandon had offered; "Enjoy your lunch?"

"Did you ever try the food while you were at the SGC, General?" Brandon replied as he attempted a small joke to measure how the General responded. He was pleased to see the General smile once more and even detected a hint of a laugh; "Yes I did enjoy it Sir, thank you."

"That's good." Etherington replied; "As I said before I would let you know the moment the other members of your team were ready to be introduced."

"Yes Sir. I remember."

"We will get to that in a moment, I promise. I know you're eager to meet your colleagues. For now though, I'd like to introduce you to some of the Eboras crew you will be working alongside also."

"You mean this isn't my new team, General?" enquired Brandon, trying another small joke. The men and women who had congregated around Brandon's table alongside the General laughed at each other. Etherington seemed to ignore it, however.

"This is Dr. David Tisdale." Etherington said, motioning toward the man immediately to his left; "He is Britain's foremost expert on Wormhole Physics and will be evaluating your trips through the Gate on a regular basis as well as continuing his research on the Stargate."

'_Great.' _Brandon thought, _'That's all I need. More suits…'_

"Pleased to meet you, Captain." Dr. Tisdale said grinning and holding out his hand for a formal greeting. Brandon looked at the Doctor as he shook the hand extended out in front of him; "What the General didn't tell you is that I'm also an Astrophysicist and Mathematician. Any problems or questions you have about Gate Travel or anything like that, I'm here to help." Brandon offered up a rather half-assed smile as the handshake was ended, electing to not even attempt to try and hide the half-assedness of it.

"And this is Joseph Bennett..." Etherington continued, motioning his hand toward the man at the far left and seemingly hiding behind the Doctor; "...Dr. Tisdale's assistant."

"Hello Captain…" Bennett said, sheepishly; "…pleased to meet you. We are all v-"

"We are all very excited to get to work alongside you, Captain." Dr. Tisdale appeared to talk over his assistant as though he wasn't there. Bennett almost seemed to shrink inside of his brown suit as Dr. Tisdale grinned once again.

Brandon was the type of person who, once he'd formed a first impression about someone it was very difficult for him to alter his perception of them from then on. Within the first twenty seconds or so of meeting Dr. Tisdale his opinion about the man had been very much established and…well, it wasn't exactly a pleasant one. Tisdale came across as nothing more than a bully and a bit of a slimy smart-ass and wasn't sure about the relationship between him and Bennett, whether it was more _Master & Servant_ than _Professor & Assistant_, however he had a feeling he would probably find out soon. He made a point to snub the Astrophysicist or whatever he was as he turned to Bennett and said; "Yes, thank you. Pleased to meet you as well Mr Bennett. I'm looking forward to getting started and working alongside you guys as well." Brandon saw Bennett's face light up at the same time as Dr. Tisdale's face melted into a frown.

"Captain…" Etherington said, continuing his little meet and greet; "I'd now like to introduce you to our Chief Medical Assistant on Eboras: Doctor Kayleigh Grodin. And this is _her _assistant, Doctor Amanda Long."

"Doctor Grodin, hello…pleased to meet you." Brandon said as he offered his hand in greeting. He was struck by her rather bright, ebony face…and of course her doctors outfit. He made sure he remained professional - especially seeing as the General was stood right there and who may as well have been her father. "So you're the one who's looking after us all? I'll be sure to stay on your good side."

"You better make sure you do." Dr. Grodin replied with a laugh as she took his hand and shook it; "Nah, I'm just kidding. You're in safe hands. What the General didn't tell you is that I'm also a horse-owner and keen Poker player!" Brandon understood the joke straight away. He looked over at Dr. Tisdale to see if he got it as well. He smiled a little as he saw the Mathematician's face melt even more into its frown. Now though, it wasn't so much of a frown as it was a grimace. It appeared that most of the Eboras staff had reached the same conclusion about Dr. Tisdale as he had just done.

"Poker, huh? Well we will just have to see how keen you are when we get the chance won't we?" Brandon said, turning back to Dr. Grodin; "I play a little too."

"Excellent! You're on." Dr. Grodin said with a cheeky smile on her pretty face. She seemed a few years older than Brandon, probably around thirty years of age. She had the look and aura of an experienced and very capable professional, but Brandon could tell that despite her age and occupation, she knew how to have fun with the best of them - another one of his first impressions that he had no doubt was very close to being right.

"You'll have to beat me first, Captain." said Dr. Long, stepping forward from behind Dr. Grodin; "Doctor Amanda Long, Pleased to meet you."

Brandon was slightly caught off-guard as the young Doctor - extremely beautiful, no more than 25 years of age and a shock of exquisite long blonde hair - stepped forward to greet him. She smiled as she held out her hand to greet Brandon, only extending it ever so slightly so she was forced to get quite close to complete the greeting. Brandon felt Etherington's eyes literally burn through his face and Brandon dared not let his own eyes meet them.

"So err, Dr. Long…you're a Poker player too?" Brandon enquired nervously.

"No." Long replied, looking straight at Brandon, the crooked, flirty smile displayed proudly across her smooth face. For the first time in a long while, Brandon was genuinely speechless. Had the commissary been a nightclub, he'd have known _exactly_ what to say, but this was no nightclub and he was desperately trying to make sure he remembered where he was and appear professional…but it was hard.

"Cool. So ummm…m'very looking forward to working with you, Doctor." Brandon said eventually. Only realising at that point he was still shaking the pretty Doctor's hand. He withdrew his hand as quick as he could and let out a very nervous sound which was sort of half laugh, half sigh.

"Yeah, me too." Replied Dr. Long and turned to walk back behind Dr. Grodin, who Brandon noticed was shaking her head slightly and hiding a smile.

'_This place is great_' Brandon thought to himself.

"General, they're ready for him." said Officer Kennedy as she approached the table all of a sudden.

"I know they are Officer, thank you." Etherington said; "We're on our way there now." He turned to address the group who had accompanied him to Brandon's table; "OK everyone thanks for your time…now back to work." With that, the Doctors and Astrophysicists said their goodbyes to Brandon with the exception of Dr. Long, who added a coy wave and another crooked smile.

"I'm looking forward to that Poker game, Captain." said Dr. Grodin over her shoulder as she was about to exit the commissary. Brandon nodded and smiled. He was too.

"Captain! How are you? You ready to meet your team?" said Officer Kennedy cheerfully once they and the General were alone.

"Good to see you again Officer." replied Brandon; "Yes I am ready, I can't wait to be honest. Are they all…you know, sane?"

"Ha ha of course, just about!" Officer Kennedy replied with a laugh. "I'm sure you'll fit right in, so you will."

"Then I guess you had better introduce yourself to them, Captain." said Etherington with a smile of his own. "If you would like to follow myself and Officer Kennedy you can meet them right now."

"Thank you, General." Said Brandon as the General and Officer Kennedy strode toward an exit on the other side of the room to where the earlier group had left. He quickly picked up his half-full fifth and last coffee that was still on the table and drank it down as quickly as he could then proceeded to follow them out the commissary.


	4. Act 4

_**Act 4:**_

Brandon was led by Etherington and Officer Kennedy to another door along another corridor not too dissimilar to the one leading to the General's office. Etherington had explained he would be given time to get to know the rest of his team before they all met their new CO. Officer Kennedy had flashed him with another radiant smile as she left, now Brandon was alone, stood in front of the door and for just a moment felt a sudden rush of nerves, he still couldn't quite believe all of this was real. He gathered himself for a moment and tried the door. It clicked open and Brandon took a step inside. The room was quite small, on the light-blue walls stood a few decorative pictures of Stargates and of a triangular emblem with a small circle on the top…the same emblem everyone back at the SGC had on their uniforms, he remembered. A few plants, a water-cooler and some comfy-looking settees were all that was left in the room, save for a small en-suite Bathroom to his right and another closed door at the opposite end of the room. On the settees sat four other soldiers dressed in the same military uniform as Brandon. Most of the soldiers had appeared to be in mid-conversation as Brandon had entered but were now silent and looking towards him. He returned the looks of his new team-mates, all of whom were now on their feet and saluting him. He made a mental note of the insignia on their jackets: _'Lieutenant, 2__nd__Lieutenant, another Lieutenant, something else I can't make out'_…good. The team of soldiers he was about to join had given him a good first impression, now Brandon could return the salutes.

"At ease guys- oh, and errr…lady." Brandon said, noticing all of a sudden that one of the Lieutenants that had saluted him was in fact female; "I'm not your new CO…I take it that's who you're expecting?"

"Yes Sir, we are…" replied the female Lieutenant as she stepped forward to introduce herself. Brandon noted how bright and eager she appeared as she approached; "Lt. Sarah Lawnes, good to meet you."

"Capt. Brandon Turner, likewise…and I'm waiting to meet the guy too." He lifted his head to direct his next question to the rest of the room; "So how are you doing with all this?"

"It's a bloody wind-up isn't it? Got to be!" answered the junior Lieutenant; "I mean, Star Gates? Exploring the Galaxy? Alien Tribes? Come on…"

"Well I was just as cynical about it all as you Lieutenant, 'til I saw the suns…" Brandon replied with only a hint of a sarcastic grin; "…and it cost me £100 too."

"Come again?"

"Haven't you looked out a window since you got here?" Brandon motioned his thumb over his shoulder toward the door to the corridor; "We're not in Colorado anymore."

"Oh. I errr, I guess I haven't…looked, really." The junior Lieutenant said, standing in the middle of the room and looking rather lost; "Is it-"

"Oh yeah…" Brandon nodded, still smiling; "…that's definitely not Colorado!"

"Hang on, did you just say suns? As in _more than one?_ What d'you mean by that?"

"Just look out the window next time you pass one, OK Lieutenant?" Brandon laughed as he held out his hand in greeting; "Capt. Brandon Turner."

"Yeah, oh…2nd Lieutenant Billy Davidson, it's good to meet you, Sir."

"You too." Brandon replied as the handshakes were exchanged. While Lt. Davidson was introducing himself to him, Brandon noticed that one of his other new team-mates had since returned to his seat and turned his attention back to the pamphlet he had been reading at the time he had entered the room, seemingly no longer interested at the arrival of the new guy. Brandon decided he should turn his attention to him. He took a step forward past the Lieutenant to prompt the introduction. As he did, he made sure to inspect the insignia on the soldiers' fatigues. He was a Captain, just like him. Brandon made a mental not od how the team was shaping up: two Captains and a CO ranked above that…probably Major. At least it was starting to really sound like a flagship team, Brandon thought. He was very happy to be part of this team, even if he wasn't going to be the one to be in charge.

"Hello, Captain," said Brandon offering his hand in greeting to the seated soldier. He'd decided that if they had been assigned to the same team then at least they should nip any animosities or rivalries within the group in the bud right away; "Captain Turner, how you doing?"

The Captain looked up at Brandon but seemed to make a point of not smiling or looking impressed. He paused before returning the handshake and replied: "Capt. Jonathan Porter, Aldershot Garrison."

"OK, good." Brandon said as the handshake ended. As far as greetings go, it appears that was the best Brandon was going to get from the Captain.

"So Porter…" Brandon said sitting down on the settee next to him; "…you've had more face-time with this lot…what are they like?"

Capt. Porter looked up from his pamphlet and scanned the rest of GB1. Davidson was sat on the settee opposite the Captains with the soldier Brandon hadn't yet met and Lawnes was still on her feet and was now sipping from a cup of water. They were all returning Porter's look, waiting for his reply.

"They're OK." he said at last, "They all seem like capable soldiers, I suppose. Although we are all as confused as each other as to what's going on here. How come we're just meeting you now? Why were you not at the SGC briefing?"

The rest of GB1 turned their attention away from Capt. Porter and all looked at each other. Brandon noticed that with the resigned look on their faces, they all expected a half-hearted response like that from the Captain. Brandon concluded that Capt. Porter must have had an opportunity earlier on to endear himself to his team but had failed miserably and the rest of GB1 had already formed their own first impressions of him.

"Well first of all, excellent first assessment of the team, Captain…" Brandon said with a thumbs-up, very much intending it sarcastically; "…and to answer your question: it sounds like there was a mix-up or a delay or something which meant I was late arriving at the SGC. Missed the briefings there and here and the main meet & greet that you guys all had oh- and, girl…and had to go through the whole bloody thing at the SGC on my own. Well, almost. There was one other soldier who got held up too and we both got here a few hours ago…and now, here I am."

"So, you're just like us, waiting to meet the CO too?" enquired Lawnes, walking over to the arm of the settee opposite Brandon and sitting down.

"Yeah…" Brandon said with a sigh, abandoning any lingering hope he was wrong; "I'm part of the posse."

"Awesome!" said Davidson; "You'll fit right in. We all met at the SGC but we didn't get assigned to GB1 until about 20 minutes ago. I reckon we're the best ones."

"We _are_ the best ones. Hence the '1' in GB1." said Lawnes.

"Oh, yeah right. I guess that's kind of self-explanatory." replied Lt. Davidson, again looking a little lost. Brandon allowed a little smile to encroach across his lips. His first impressions were being formed about the people in the room, just as they were in the commissary and he couldn't help but like Lt. Davidson. He was rather diminutive, not exactly well-built either and had a pale complexion. Brandon wondered for a second why or even how he had been selected for GB1 given his almost scrawny stature, but for now that didn't matter and Brandon concluded that he'd at least be fun to have on a long mission when things got boring.

"No," Davidson continued; "I meant we're the best _people!" _He motioned his finger so as to indicate he meant everyone in the room.

"_Aah_, right." replied Lawnes.

"We were instructed to come to this room and wait to be introduced to our CO. I assumed at first that was you when you walked in, Captain." said Capt. Porter to Brandon, turning the conversation back to him and killing any team bonding that was going on. Brandon, now accepting his position as joint 2nd in Command of the team, decided it would do no harm to reveal what he was expecting when he stepped through the Stargate a few hours ago.

"To be honest Captain, when my CO back at Catterick told me about this thing I was told I would be taking charge of a unit. It was Etherington who told me when I got here that things had changed and I was just going to be joining GB1, not leading it."

"Hmm…do you reckon maybe they thought you weren't good enough?" Porter enquired, the rest of the room seemingly froze on the spot. With that comment, Brandon's like-o-meter for Capt. Porter plummeted to zero and he was now resisting the urge to plant one on the nose of the other Captain, who had basically just scored a point on him in front of the rest of the team.

Brandon replied; "Maybe they did, Captain I don't know." but decided that he needed to _equalize the score_ as soon as he could and continued; "I tell you though, It's a good thing we were redeployed now 'cause I hear that they're cutting Army Funding thanks to the recession we're having back home."

The rest of GB1 looked puzzled.

"I hadn't heard of that actually Captain, are you sure?" enquired Capt. Porter.

"Oh yes, Captain." Brandon said, then turned to the other Lieutenant he had yet to speak to; "There's evidence it has already started. Take Aldershot for example, Social Skills and Team Bonding exercises appear to have been axed there already."

It took a moment or two for the rest of GB1 to get the joke, but once the penny had dropped Brandon could see the three Lieutenants on the settee opposite give each other the look that they all got it and was pleased to detect a couple of grins too. Looking over at Capt. Porter it was clear he got the 'joke' as well, but was now looking back at his pamphlet with a slight nod of his head. Dropping his head to the floor, Brandon felt a little disappointed he had been assigned to a team where there was someone like Capt. Porter, someone with whom he had not been able to start on the right foot with. At that moment however, he noticed the other Captain had looked up from his pamphlet and he turned to meet his gaze.

"Touché, Captain." Porter said with a smile. "Let me start again, I'm Capt. Porter, Aldershot Garrison." This time, Porter extended _his_ hand to Brandon. Being a little surprised yet a little relieved that Porter was at least a little OK, he smiled back and accepted the greeting.

"He must remember something from the older exercises, Captain!" chimed Lt. Davidson with a hearty laugh at Porter's sudden personality change. Lt. Lawnes joined in with Lt. Davidson's joke.

"Watch your mouth, Lieutenant." Warned Porter, but retaining enough of a smile to not make it too menacing. Lt. Davidson promptly abandoned the laugh and went over to the Water Cooler.

"OK, good." Brandon said, slapping his lap with his hands; "So how long they keeping us waiting like this?"

The other Lieutenant, the one Brandon hadn't yet spoke to, chose this moment to join in; "It's been half an hour now, Captain. Half hour I've been here with this lot." He looked over at the Water Cooler and fixed an impatient look Lt. Davidson's way, who responded with a shrug of his shoulders and a puzzled look. Brandon realised that the Lieutenant had been in this room a good 20 minutes longer than he had and, while he was mildly entertained by Davidson so far, maybe half an hour in Davidson's company was perhaps a little too long for the Lieutenant. Again, Brandon smiled to himself. He surprised himself as he realised he actually liked this lot, even Porter. The first Impressions of them were good. He again wondered about what their new CO they were about to meet - any time now - would be like. He was hoping he wouldn't be waiting too long to find out.

"Hey come on Lieutenant, can't be that long now, right?" Brandon said to the Lieutenant, who was still looking at Davidson with the same, irritated look.

"You haven't heard him whistling yet have you, Captain?" replied the Lieutenant, turning to Brandon.

"Oh my G- yeah the whistling!" said Lawnes. "You're in for a treat, I assure you Captain."

"Right well I'll look forward to that I guess." replied Brandon, realising that at some point soon he'll probably know first-hand what Lawnes was alluding to. He stood up to shake the hand of the Lieutenant; "Captain Turner, great to meet you."

The Lieutenant would have also got to his feet to shake the Captains hand were it a bigger room. Instead he had to remain seated; "Lt. Liam Hulme, field Medic."

"Field Medic? Right, so you're our Grodin-in-the-field then? Excellent."

"Indeed I am." said Lt. Hulme.

"OK guys, and…girl." said Brandon, still on his feet and turning to address his new team; "I know about as much as you guys do about this whole Stargate thing at this point, but one thing they've all been saying that has stuck with me is the fact that we're here to represent our Country. Let's do it proud, OK?"

The rest of GB1, all eyes on him, appeared roused by his little speech. They all replied with a ripple of agreement, looking round at each other to confirm they were all on the same page. Porter almost looked outdone, as though he felt he should have been the one to give a speech like that.

At that moment, the door behind where Brandon was stood opened. GB1 in-sync looked around at the door, where a Private was now stood.

"General Etherington is ready for you now." said the Private, then stood aside and motioned for the team to enter the room. Porter, Lawnes and Hulme all got to their feet while Davidson quickly drank his water and threw the cup toward the bin, missing it hopelessly.

"Told you it wouldn't be long, Lieutenant." Brandon said to Hulme under his breath.

Hulme replied; "He was about to start whistling again, I know it."

"He'd have got his Beret shoved up his nose." They both heard Lawnes say from behind them.

Inside the room was General Etherington, surveying the five soldiers as they entered what appeared to be a briefing room. Every member offered the General a salute once they were in the room. Another man, a Soldier, was at the left-hand side of the room stood arms behind his back at the viewing window overlooking the 'Gate Room. He was looking away so Brandon and the rest of GB1 could not see who this was, but they assumed it was the man they were here to meet, their new CO. They all stood round the briefing room table as the Private saluted the General and exited through the door they had just entered, leaving them alone with Etherington and the other Soldier.

"GB1, thank you for joining us…and for your patience." announced Etherington; "The reason you're here is you are about to meet your new CO. I'd like you all to meet him now." He motioned his hand toward the Soldier stood by the window, who began to turn around to greet the rest of his team. As he turned fully toward his new team, the General introduced him; "This is Major Mark Whitmore."

GB1 as a unit saluted the Major promptly save for one…Brandon. The Major saluted his team back, yet Brandon was frozen on the spot, mouth open in utter disbelief. He barely kept his immediate thoughts in his mind, _'Whitmore? Mark…f #king…Whitmore?! For cryin' out loud, ANYONE but him…'_


End file.
